NOTES AND QUERIES. 429 
third was secured near the city of Lincoln. It would be interesting 
to know whether other observers have noticed this species lately in 
our eastern counties, as possibly there has been a larger immigration 
from the Continent this year than usual. In autumn these birds 
leave their nesting haunts in Europe, and Gitke has observed enor- 
mous flights passing over Heligoland, travelling westward, and the 
late Lord Lilford also noticed these migrating flocks in Spain, journey- 
ing to the south. In his work on the ‘Birds of Heligoland,’ Gitke 
states that this species somehow always manages to avoid rough 
weather during the autumn migration, so perhaps it was the glori- 
ously fine late September this year which tempted these birds to visit 
our inhospitable shores. I think all three specimens were immature 
birds, one being of an almost uniform dark brown colour.—F. L. 
Buatuwayt (Lincoln). 
Spotted Crake at Great Yarmouth.—On Sept. 26th I received a 
Spotted Crake (Porzana maruetia) in the flesh, which was shot from 
one of the dykes on the Breydon marshes. The gunner tells me that 
his dog had great difficulty in getting the bird to rise. The squatting 
habits of the Rail family are well known to all naturalists. These 
birds at times will allow themselves almost to be trodden on, or 
even taken by the hand, rather than take to wing.—B. Dye (Great 
Yarmouth). 
September Movements of Shearwaters.— Anent the notes and 
remarks of Mr. O. V. Aplin (ante, pp. 396-7) respecting a very exten- 
sive movement of Manx Shearwaters (Puffinus anglorum) taking place 
“in the latter end of August or early in September,” the following 
note may be of interest:—On August 31st of last year (1907) I 
crossed in the steamer from Heysham to Douglas, Isle of Man. When 
nearly half-way across, and at about four p.m., the vessel passed 
through a large number of Manx Sheaiwaters, which were evidently 
undertaking a migratory movement of some magnitude. The birds 
were not in flocks, but usually from one hundred to two hundred 
yards apart, and all were heading in exactly the same direction. They 
were crossing our track diagonally, and, assuming that the boat was 
going almost due west, they were making a south-south-westerly 
course. And so intent were they individually in keeping this direc- 
tion that those birds making towards the vessel scarcely deviated 
from their course; consequently a number passed quite close in front 
of the bows during the time that we were amongst them. ‘The flight 
must have been fully five or six miles in width, as we were quite 
twenty minutes passing through them, and the boat was making at 
